Read Essence and Alchemy Online
Authors: Mandy Aftel
Essence and Alchemy (20 page)
Accessory notes all possess and are defined by their high odor strength. They are powerful, passionate, and idiosyncratic. Some of them smell obnoxiously strong and take some getting used to, and there is no predicting how they will combine with the other elements of a blend. They can bring out a nuance of another essence or reveal an entirely unsuspected aspect of it. To work with them is to be intensely in the presence of the mysterious and the magical. They are complexity itselfâlayered, deep, and unfathomable.
Accessory notes can be a point of departure for a blend or a late addition to it, but however they are used, they require careful consideration of the other ingredients' character, intensity, and duration. They are my favorite notes to work with, and I will often build a perfume around one or two of them, highlighting their subtle tonalities and colorations. More than any other essences, they require experimentation and study to discover their possibilities. Spending time combining them with blander essences will trigger unconscious associations and yield countless ideas for the perfumer, shedding light on the architecture of sensuality.
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H
ow, then, to begin?
ow, then, to begin?
As you would a festive meal, with alcoholâor jojoba oil or whatever medium you are blending in. Place 15 ml (one-half ounce) of the blending medium in a small beaker. Have another small
beaker or a shot glass handy, with a couple of inches of rubbing alcohol in it, so that you can rinse out your droppers as you use them, avoiding contaminating one essence with another. (After you have added the desired number of drops of a given essence to the blend, drain the unused portion back into its original bottle, then pump your dropper in the rubbing alcohol.)
beaker or a shot glass handy, with a couple of inches of rubbing alcohol in it, so that you can rinse out your droppers as you use them, avoiding contaminating one essence with another. (After you have added the desired number of drops of a given essence to the blend, drain the unused portion back into its original bottle, then pump your dropper in the rubbing alcohol.)
Natural perfume samples can be dosed at a concentration of 10 percent. This means that in 15 ml of alcohol you would drop 1.5 ml of perfume essences. The ratio of base to middle to top is approximately 40:30:30. There are approximately 40 drops in I ml, or 60 drops in 1.5 ml, so to 15 ml of alcohol you would add approximately 24 drops of base, 18 drops of middle, and 18 drops of top. For jojoba, the proportions are similar, except that I like to double the proportion of top notes to compensate for the heavier, more tampeddown quality the oil imparts to the essences.
Before you add essences to the alcohol or jojoba, you need to create chords in a preliminary way. Place one drop each of up to three essences (but no more than that) on a perfume blotter and mix them together by placing one drop on top of another on the strip, then sample the scent. To get a clearer sense of the interaction of the essences in a given ratio, place corresponding proportions (1:1:3, for example) of the various essences on separate blotters and hold them together under your nose. This will give you a very rough idea of what the chord will smell like. (You can make preliminary decisions about all the chords, or you can start with an idea for the base chord, blend it, and return to the blotter strips to work out each succeeding chord as you go.)
When you have an interesting idea for the base chord worked out, begin dropping the base notes into the alcohol or jojoba, smelling as you go. Remember that the base chord should be solid, but not so heavy that it drags down the middle and top notes. Record the exact amounts you add, and note your own perceptions of the affinities and antagonisms of each essence. This is how you develop an olfactory consciousness. “The composer will start
thinking
94
in odors, will let them penetrate his mind; their universe will become his second nature,” Roudnitska observes.
thinking
94
in odors, will let them penetrate his mind; their universe will become his second nature,” Roudnitska observes.
Gradually add the middle notes, smelling the blend after the addition of each essence to acquaint yourself with the nuances of change it brings, and adjusting as you go. Remember that the purpose of the middle notes is to smooth and beautify the base notes, and to bridge the distance between base and top. Don't just sniff it in the beaker; rub a drop or two on your hand or arm. Perfume is meant to be smelled on the body, not in the air, and there is no other way to get a sense of its
fingerprint
, its individual characteristics, as they will develop on the wearer's skin.
fingerprint
, its individual characteristics, as they will develop on the wearer's skin.
Once the middle and base notes are in, smell the mixture and think about where you want the blend to go next. Do you want it sweeter? Lighter? Choose the top notes to finish off the shape of the perfume, to make it brighter, tarter, or simply more sharply defined.
Remember that creating a perfume is like constructing a building. Each story is perched upon the one below, and if the foundation is not solid enough or the whole is not balanced properly, it will simply tumble to the ground in a heap. The architecture must be not just pleasing but interesting and complex as well. As Roudnitska observes, “The shape of a perfume
95
derives from an aesthetic combination chosen and desired by the perfumer ⦠The musician combines sounds to create not just harmonies, but acoustic and musical shapes of far greater complexity and scope. Likewise the painter combines
colors, blending their tones so that they make up a diversity of shapes, representational or otherwise.”
95
derives from an aesthetic combination chosen and desired by the perfumer ⦠The musician combines sounds to create not just harmonies, but acoustic and musical shapes of far greater complexity and scope. Likewise the painter combines
colors, blending their tones so that they make up a diversity of shapes, representational or otherwise.”
Like wine, newly made perfume must be left to rest for a while, in order to allow the essences to marry with one another fully under the influence of the alcohol or jojoba, their separate identities mellowing and merging in a ripe bouquet. This is an essential aspect of the process. Leave it undisturbed in a somewhat cool place for at least a week orâif you have the timeâup to a month, sealed tightly in a glass bottle as close in volume as possible to the sample itself While the blend rests undisturbed, magical changes are taking place.
Or not. Sometimes the mixture smells remarkably better with time, sometimes worse. Sometimes one scent rises up in the bottle and dominates everything else, as I discovered to my dismay when I was making a custom perfume for the singer and composer Donovan. One of the major base notes was oakmoss, the complicated, dark, rich lichen that grows on oak trees and lends an earthiness to a perfume blend. After the perfume had rested, however, I discovered that it had developed an unmistakable muddy quality that enchained the intensely floral heart of the perfume, making it difficult to find any other notes at all in the murky midst: too much oakmoss. As I discovered the hard way, certain essences grow exponentially in the bottle, overpowering the delicate qualities of the others.
At this point, the perfumer needs to know how to smell like a pro: thinking, testing, rejecting, and reconsidering. Are any notes abrasive? Too obvious? Too sharp? Too dull? Does the fingerprint evolve harmoniously? Does a single note dominate the dryout, or is it well blended? Above all, does it have form? Roudnitska notes, “This form must be considered
96
as an entity. Is it incoherent or homogeneous, boring or original, does it emanate an impression of harmony, does it have relief and character, or is it flat? Is it dynamic (without being over-whelming, heady, or heavy)? Does it have volume, is it sufficiently clinging?”
96
as an entity. Is it incoherent or homogeneous, boring or original, does it emanate an impression of harmony, does it have relief and character, or is it flat? Is it dynamic (without being over-whelming, heady, or heavy)? Does it have volume, is it sufficiently clinging?”
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An alchemical process
A skilled perfumer must be able not only to diagnose but to prescribe. A lack of shape may indicate a weakness in the top notes. A muddy fragrance is often the result of a problem with the base notes, as with Donovan's oakmoss. Sometimes it is a question of adjusting the ratio of top, middle, and base. Sometimes the entire blend is too ambitious and unfocused and you need to toss it and begin again, working with a few of the most interesting ideas in a more restrained blend. If a blend seems to have too many sharp edges, try adding some rose. If the top is flat and boring, try a drop or two of black pepper.
The perfumer refines and adjusts the blendâadding a little more of this oil or that. Don't think that a formula must be evenly balanced. As I have discussed, it can (and usually should) highlight or favor one or a few essences, especially those of strongly distinctive character. The only consideration of importance is whether the different essences join together in such a way as to create an interesting and dynamic scent, one that evolves through all the stages of the dryout in an idiosyncratic and charming way. This elusive quality is called powdering, and chemistry cannot answer for all its mysteries. We need something akin to the alchemical concept of the “subtle body,” believed to consist of particles of matter so fine they were impossible to perceive.
Like the creative processes in art and alchemy, perfume composition ultimately depends as much on talent and intuition as it does on knowledge and practice. There are no real rules. If a beautiful new smell is created, the path to it is irrelevant. And so I offer these guidelines to the beginning perfumer with the caveat that that is all they are. Once you have gained a thorough familiarity with the materials, the keys to creating perfume are openness, a sense of play, and an active
olfactory imagination. The intuitive perfumer knows how to observe the relationships between aromas, how to draw conclusions from the observations, and how to put those conclusions to beautiful use. As Roudnitska puts it, “For intuition is no miracle
97
; it is a spark that will fly once a large enough charge of knowledge, experiments, thought and meditation has been built up.”
olfactory imagination. The intuitive perfumer knows how to observe the relationships between aromas, how to draw conclusions from the observations, and how to put those conclusions to beautiful use. As Roudnitska puts it, “For intuition is no miracle
97
; it is a spark that will fly once a large enough charge of knowledge, experiments, thought and meditation has been built up.”
To make perfume is to experience, not to analyze. In Henri Bergson's
98
terms, that is the very crux of intuition. “Intuition, then, signifies first of all consciousness, but immediate consciousness, a vision which is scarcely distinguishable from the object seen,” he writes in
The Creative Mind
. Nor does the creative vision rest outside the object; it penetrates to the very core. “We call intuition here the
sympathy
by which one is transported into the interior of an object in order to coincide with what there is unique and consequently inexpressible in it ⦠Analyzing then consists in expressing a thing in terms of what is not it. All analysis is thus a translation, a development into symbols.”
98
terms, that is the very crux of intuition. “Intuition, then, signifies first of all consciousness, but immediate consciousness, a vision which is scarcely distinguishable from the object seen,” he writes in
The Creative Mind
. Nor does the creative vision rest outside the object; it penetrates to the very core. “We call intuition here the
sympathy
by which one is transported into the interior of an object in order to coincide with what there is unique and consequently inexpressible in it ⦠Analyzing then consists in expressing a thing in terms of what is not it. All analysis is thus a translation, a development into symbols.”
So the perfumer does not perform a purely cerebral feat. Nor, like the alchemist, does she merely execute a physical act. The essences themselves contain what the alchemist refers to as
arcanum
99
: “a secret, incorporeal, and immortal thing, which no man can know save by experience. It is the interior virtue of any substance which can achieve a thousand more wonders than the thing itself. The unrevealed principle, undying essence.” This is a wonderful description of the richness and complexity of natural substances and their effect on us as we work with them.
arcanum
99
: “a secret, incorporeal, and immortal thing, which no man can know save by experience. It is the interior virtue of any substance which can achieve a thousand more wonders than the thing itself. The unrevealed principle, undying essence.” This is a wonderful description of the richness and complexity of natural substances and their effect on us as we work with them.
If we are lucky, the essencesâby whatever elusive processâmarry, to form a
quintessence
, so called because it is something infinitely more than the sum of its elements and thus fulfills the alchemist's quest. The language of aesthetics is different, but the sentiment, ultimately, is the same, including the ascription of divine character to those rare creations that are both original and beautiful.
“In everything that is graceful
100
,” Bergson writes, “we see, we feel, we divine a kind of abandon, as it were, a condescension. Thus, for him who contemplates the universe with the eye of an artist, it is grace that is apprehended through the veil of beauty, and beneath grace it is goodness which shines through. Each thing manifests, in the movement recorded by its form, the infinite generosity of a principle which gives itself.”
quintessence
, so called because it is something infinitely more than the sum of its elements and thus fulfills the alchemist's quest. The language of aesthetics is different, but the sentiment, ultimately, is the same, including the ascription of divine character to those rare creations that are both original and beautiful.
“In everything that is graceful
100
,” Bergson writes, “we see, we feel, we divine a kind of abandon, as it were, a condescension. Thus, for him who contemplates the universe with the eye of an artist, it is grace that is apprehended through the veil of beauty, and beneath grace it is goodness which shines through. Each thing manifests, in the movement recorded by its form, the infinite generosity of a principle which gives itself.”
Hacon de Seduction Perfume and the Boudoir
I will tell you of a perfume which my mistress has from the graces and the gods of love; when you smell it, you will ask of the deities to make of you only a nose.
â
Catullus
Catullus
101S
CENT has long been a weapon in the arsenal of seduction. Cleopatraânot a beautiful woman by some accountsâdeveloped the art of self-adornment into a science. She had her own perfume workshop, and she was known to rub her mouth with solid perfume before she kissed a lover, so that the scent would force him to think of her after they parted. She had the sails of the barge upon which she received Mark Antony drenched in perfume, and later held a rendezvous in a room with a carpet of rose petals, several feet thick, that was fixed in place by nets secured to the walls.
The mythologies of many cultures are filled with references to the seductive power of perfume, a manifestation of the ancient belief that aromatics are of supernatural origin. Kama, the Hindu god of love, was said to carry flowers in his quiver, instead of arrows. Hades,
Greek god of the underworld, used the alluringly scented narcissus flower to ensnare Persephone. The sweet-smelling goddess of love, Aphrodite (for whom aphrodisiacs are named), delighted in beautiful aromas and dispensed them with a free hand to aid seductions in the heavens and on earth. She gave a special perfume recipe to Helen of Troy, drenched Paris with scent when she placed him on his wedding bed, and gave the ferryman Phaon a fragrance that made women, including the lesbian poet Sappho and a phalanx of formerly obedient wives, fall in love with him. (He came, alas, to an unfortunate end when he was discovered by a jealous husband.) Even Zeus, king of the gods, was susceptible to a sweet scent, and when Hera wished to seduce him, she anointed her body with scented oils.
Greek god of the underworld, used the alluringly scented narcissus flower to ensnare Persephone. The sweet-smelling goddess of love, Aphrodite (for whom aphrodisiacs are named), delighted in beautiful aromas and dispensed them with a free hand to aid seductions in the heavens and on earth. She gave a special perfume recipe to Helen of Troy, drenched Paris with scent when she placed him on his wedding bed, and gave the ferryman Phaon a fragrance that made women, including the lesbian poet Sappho and a phalanx of formerly obedient wives, fall in love with him. (He came, alas, to an unfortunate end when he was discovered by a jealous husband.) Even Zeus, king of the gods, was susceptible to a sweet scent, and when Hera wished to seduce him, she anointed her body with scented oils.
Perfuming cupids, after a first-century Pompeiian fresco
Among mere mortals, hope springs eternal that a particular perfume ingredient or recipe will make even the biggest schlemiel utterly irresistible. In ancient Jerusalem, young women put myrrh and balsam in their shoes. When they spotted an attractive young man in the marketplace, they approached and kicked their feet at him, misting him with scent to spark his desire. But of all the perfumery ingredients, none has enjoyed as pervasive and enduring an erotic reputation as civet; even dogs have been said to find it sexually arousing. It would be difficult, however, to surpass the ecstasies of Petrus Castellus in
De Hyoene Odorifera,
his 1688 treatise on the subject:
De Hyoene Odorifera,
his 1688 treatise on the subject:
Woman pouring perfume, Roman fresco
To make the uterus more greedy for semen, they say that civet smeared on the glans penis will increase the woman's pleasure during coitus, whence it [the uterus] will more readily receive the semen ⦠which will cause so much desire for coitus that she will almost continually wish to make love with her husband. And in particular, if a man wishes to go with a woman, if he shall place on the tip of his penis of this same civet and unexpectedly use it, he will arouse in her the greatest pleasure.
Perfume
is
seductive, so much so that from time to time, the powers that be have felt it incumbent upon them to get matters in hand. Such was the sentiment in England in 1770 when an Act of Parliament decreed that “all women, of whatever age, rank, profession, or degree, whether virgins, maids, or widows, that shall, from and after such Act, impose upon, seduce, and betray into matrimony, any of His Majesty's subjects, by the scents, paints, cosmetic washes, artificial teeth, false hair, Spanish wool, iron stays, hoops, highheeled shoes, bolstered hips, shall incur the penalty of the law now in force against witchcraft and like misdemeanors, and that the marriage, upon conviction, shall stand null and void.”
is
seductive, so much so that from time to time, the powers that be have felt it incumbent upon them to get matters in hand. Such was the sentiment in England in 1770 when an Act of Parliament decreed that “all women, of whatever age, rank, profession, or degree, whether virgins, maids, or widows, that shall, from and after such Act, impose upon, seduce, and betray into matrimony, any of His Majesty's subjects, by the scents, paints, cosmetic washes, artificial teeth, false hair, Spanish wool, iron stays, hoops, highheeled shoes, bolstered hips, shall incur the penalty of the law now in force against witchcraft and like misdemeanors, and that the marriage, upon conviction, shall stand null and void.”
Yet even the English could not suppress the powers of perfume for long. The very next year in London, a man named James Graham attracted national attention by setting up an establishment to help childless couples conceive. The main attraction was a “Celestial Bed
102
,” supported by forty colorful and elaborately carved pillars, which Graham touted as possessing “magical influences which are now celebrated from pole to pole and from the rising to the setting sun.” The chief agent of the magic was scent. The bed was crowned by a dome wafting “odoriferous and balmy spells and essences” that were said to revive and invigorate. The mattress was stuffed not with feathers but with “sweet new wheat or oatstraw mingled with balm,
rose leaves, lavender flowers, and oriental spices.” The sheets were perfumed with resins and balsams.
102
,” supported by forty colorful and elaborately carved pillars, which Graham touted as possessing “magical influences which are now celebrated from pole to pole and from the rising to the setting sun.” The chief agent of the magic was scent. The bed was crowned by a dome wafting “odoriferous and balmy spells and essences” that were said to revive and invigorate. The mattress was stuffed not with feathers but with “sweet new wheat or oatstraw mingled with balm,
rose leaves, lavender flowers, and oriental spices.” The sheets were perfumed with resins and balsams.
More often, the attempt to harness the erotic power of scent has inspired quests for a surefire perfume ingredient or blend. The Hungarian Laszlo Lengyel was a forerunner of the countless purveyors of “love potions” and other products touted as enhancing sexual desire and performance. In 1923, inspired by the discovery of King Tut's tomb, Lengyel and his brother produced a perfume they said was based on a formula of Cleopatra's that had been found in the tomb. Soon after, however, both brothers fell ill, in apparent confirmation of a popular superstition that ill would befall anyone who disturbed the tomb. When they withdrew their new perfume from their market, they regained their good health.
Hazardous side effects notwithstanding, cultures the world over continue to pursue the power of scent to kindle desire, especially in women. In the highlands of New Guinea, shamans say incantations over ginger leaves, which are thought to lend allure to the man who rubs them on his face and body. In the Amazon, Yanomamö men carry sachets of fragrant powders that are supposed to make attractive women tumble into their arms. Over the years, printed perfume advertisements have played upon the fact that we are no different from such peoples in our belief that fragrance can seduce. For all the slick advertising and fancy packaging, what we hold fast to is our belief in the power of matter itself to create celestial passion, or at least to wreak divine havoc.
There was a young lady named Julie,
Who was terribly fond of patchouli;
She used bottles seven,
'Til she smelt up to heaven,
Which made all the angels unruly.
Who was terribly fond of patchouli;
She used bottles seven,
'Til she smelt up to heaven,
Which made all the angels unruly.
âEthel Watts Mumford
T
he conviction that some sort of erotic “magic bullet” exists or can be created in the realm of scent is not without some scientific basis. The perception of pheromones plays a key role in animal mating habits. Pheromonesâfrom the Greek
pherin,
“to transfer,” and
hormon,
“to excite”âare chemical substances, usually volatile, that are produced in the body and evoke a response, usually sexual, in members of the same species. Like scent itself, pheromones are apprehended directly and immediately by the nervous system, triggering biological responses even before they enter consciousness. Their pathway to the brain appears to be through the airways of the nose and the vomeronasal organ (VNO), a version of the sensory organ upon which all cat species, among others, depend for information about their environment. In humans it is vestigial, consisting of two tiny pits behind the nostrils, and there is debate as to whether it remains functional, since pheromone perception has been found in people from whom it has been surgically removed.
he conviction that some sort of erotic “magic bullet” exists or can be created in the realm of scent is not without some scientific basis. The perception of pheromones plays a key role in animal mating habits. Pheromonesâfrom the Greek
pherin,
“to transfer,” and
hormon,
“to excite”âare chemical substances, usually volatile, that are produced in the body and evoke a response, usually sexual, in members of the same species. Like scent itself, pheromones are apprehended directly and immediately by the nervous system, triggering biological responses even before they enter consciousness. Their pathway to the brain appears to be through the airways of the nose and the vomeronasal organ (VNO), a version of the sensory organ upon which all cat species, among others, depend for information about their environment. In humans it is vestigial, consisting of two tiny pits behind the nostrils, and there is debate as to whether it remains functional, since pheromone perception has been found in people from whom it has been surgically removed.
However it happens, pheromone perception is what causes a lion to mate with another lion and not with a giraffe. As Roy Bedichek observes, “Death and destruction
103
hold no terrors” for an animal under the spell of these “natural aphrodisiacs.” Even plants have a sexuality based on fragrance.
103
hold no terrors” for an animal under the spell of these “natural aphrodisiacs.” Even plants have a sexuality based on fragrance.
The vegetable world
104
is pluming and perfuming itself for erotic gratification. Flowering plants are loosing urgent invitations: “Come, come right now before it is too late,” they plead, flinging their odor-burdened molecules upon the wind. Bees, butterflies, dozens of different species, even a few birds, responding, scurry from bloom to accosting bloom, giving or receiving a dab of pollen in exchange for a dip into carefully guarded nectar sacs.
104
is pluming and perfuming itself for erotic gratification. Flowering plants are loosing urgent invitations: “Come, come right now before it is too late,” they plead, flinging their odor-burdened molecules upon the wind. Bees, butterflies, dozens of different species, even a few birds, responding, scurry from bloom to accosting bloom, giving or receiving a dab of pollen in exchange for a dip into carefully guarded nectar sacs.
In nature it's a simple cycle: sensory stimulus leads to attraction which leads to seduction. And humans participate in this cycle, communicating
their desires in the wordless dialogue Herman Hesse so eloquently captured in
Narcissus and Goldmund:
“How strange it was
105
with women and loving. There really was no need for words ⦠Then how had she said it? With her eyes, yes, and with a certain intonation in her slightly thick voice, and with something more, a scent perhaps, a subtle, discreet emanation of the skin, by which women and men were able to know at once when they desired one another. It was strange, like a subtle, secret language.”
their desires in the wordless dialogue Herman Hesse so eloquently captured in
Narcissus and Goldmund:
“How strange it was
105
with women and loving. There really was no need for words ⦠Then how had she said it? With her eyes, yes, and with a certain intonation in her slightly thick voice, and with something more, a scent perhaps, a subtle, discreet emanation of the skin, by which women and men were able to know at once when they desired one another. It was strange, like a subtle, secret language.”
The discovery that pheromones could be chemically replicated excited great commercial interest in them. Not surprisingly, some of the scientists who discovered pheromones became involved in marketing perfumes based on synthesized versions. Meanwhile, perfumers continue to look for new ways of exploiting the aphrodisiac properties of specific scents, especially the indol-saturated flower absolutes, such as jasmine, orange flower, boronia, and tuberose. Yet rose, which is one of the most voluptuous essences, does not contain indol, and neither do ambrette, costus, labdanum, tolu balsam, castoreum, or civetâthe balsamic earthy and animal base notes that are perhaps the sexiest scents of all. Do they contain some other magic ingredient? Or does the whole notion of magic ingredients somehow miss the point?
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